The Beach
Georgiana took a deep, delighted breath of the salt-tanged air. A fine spray misted across her face and hair, and the sand yielded pleasantly beneath her feet. As stunning as the ocean view was from the boardwalk, it was even more enchanting up close. The waves hissed at her feet, tiny ripples of water running up to nudge at her shoes before retreating back into the seething ocean.
"Your cousins are beautiful," Georgiana said to her new friend, watching the children.
"They are indeed," Elizabeth agreed and then paused for a moment as Tommy ran shrieking past the two ladies, having been attacked by a larger than usual wave. "Though they are very noisy, too!"
"Even their noise is delightful! Their mother is very blessed to have three healthy children."
"Four, actually; my youngest cousin is not yet two years of age and needs his daily naps. My aunt, too, is recovering from a bad bout of influenza which struck several members of her household. She nursed her two sons through the worst of it, and then fell victim to it herself. She is recovering, but I am confident that she enjoys resting while little Benjamin is napping and the other children are playing on the beach."
"Where are you staying?"
"We have a rental house on Cliff Street, Number Six. It is not large, but perfectly adequate for our needs."
Tommy fell over at this juncture with a wail, and before any of the adults could react, Phoebe rushed over to pick him up, hug him, kiss him, and comfort him.
"She is such a good sister," Georgiana said admiringly.
"Yes, she acts as a little mother to her younger siblings, much like my older sister does on occasion."
"Do you have just one sister, Miss Bennet?"
"No, I am the second of five sisters, though we have no brothers."
"Four sisters! How delightful! I have only one brother, and he is twelve years my senior."
"That is a substantial gap in age, Miss Darcy. My sisters and I were all born within a span of ten years. Are your parents still living?"
"My brother and I are orphans," Georgiana said, her voice so quiet that she could barely be heard above the wind and waves. "I am very grateful to Fitzwilliam, my brother. He is a most devoted and kindly brother."
"I am sorry about your parents."
"Yes, I am as well, but at least when our father died, Fitzwilliam was of age and able to administer Pemberley and look after me. He is very intelligent and hard working. Indeed, I wish he had time to come to Ramsgate for a holiday, but his business in London keeps him very much engaged."
Elizabeth turned her back to the water and looked up to observe Mr. Wickham standing next to Mrs. Younge. The gentleman smiled and lifted a hand in greeting, and she smiled and waved back.
"At least you have Mr. Wickham and your companion," she commented and watched as Georgiana beamed up at the gentleman. Wickham returned the gesture and then turned and departed, leaving Mrs. Younge alone.
"Do you need to return to Mrs. Younge?" Elizabeth asked.
"Oh, I think I can stay down here a little longer. And yes, having Mr. Wickham here is a delight."
"He is a friend of the family, then?" Elizabeth asked, taking the girl's arm in her own and beginning to slowly wander down the beach. The two maidservants were watching the children, so she could take a few minutes to talk.
"Oh yes! His father was steward of Pemberley for many years – such a fine man, and my father trusted him completely. My father and the elder Mr. Wickham passed on more than five years ago, and as I said, my brother has been master of Pemberley ever since."
"Does Mr. Wickham serve at Pemberley in some capacity, then?"
"No, he left Derbyshire shortly after his father's death and has been in London for much of the time. He went to Cambridge with Fitzwilliam, and mentioned studying law. He is intelligent – not as clever as my brother, but then who is?"
Elizabeth could not help but chuckle at this warm description of Mr. Darcy, but she was a trifle puzzled. "So did Mr. Darcy send Mr. Wickham to keep you company here in Ramsgate?"
"No, it was mere chance that brought Mr. Wickham here at the same time that Mrs. Younge and I came from London for a holiday. We have been working hard on my music and French and art, and London is often stifling in the summer!"
Elizabeth could not help but agree with this, though there was a distant warning bell in her head at the coincidental arrival of Mr. Wickham whom, it seemed, had not been in contact with the Darcys for some years.
"Mr. Wickham is very handsome, is he not?" Georgiana sighed, a small smile playing on her lips.
"Yes, he is," Elizabeth agreed, though warily. She knew that tone very well – her two youngest sisters, fifteen and seventeen years of age, were hopeless flirts, much to the distress of Elizabeth and her older sister, Jane. But the Bennet girls had tiny dowries, whereas Miss Darcy, as the only daughter of a great estate, was almost certainly an heiress. On the other hand, it appeared that Mr. Wickham was an old and valued friend of the Darcys, so perhaps the encounter was exactly that, one of chance alone.
"Miss Darcy?"
"Yes?"
"May I ask how old you are?"
"I will be sixteen in December."
"Oh!" Elizabeth said and laughed. "I confess I thought you at least eighteen, as you are very tall. But then, my youngest sister is also fifteen and the tallest of all of us, though you are even taller than she is."
"My father and mother were tall," Georgiana said with a smile, "and my dear Fitzwilliam is one of the tallest men of my acquaintance. But tell me, what is your youngest sister like?"
Elizabeth hesitated. Lydia Bennet was a brash girl with poor manners, but naturally she could not tell that to Miss Darcy.
"My sister Lydia is pretty, with dark hair and eyes. She is very energetic, and she loves to dance."
"Is she looking forward to coming out into society then?"
"Lydia is already out, which I know must seem surprising in some ways as she is but fifteen. In the country, girls do often come out earlier."
"I do find it surprising," Georgiana admitted. "I will probably not come out until at least eighteen years of age, and I confess that I am not looking forward to it. I do not like people staring at me or meeting strangers. But perhaps your sister is not shy?"
This provoked a chuckle from her companion, and Elizabeth said, "Not at all. Lydia is completely self-assured."
"I envy her for that," the girl said softly. "I often feel very uneasy in company."
Elizabeth blew out a breath and halted to stare out at the sea, which had looked a trifle wilder than it had even half an hour earlier. The wind was picking up, though the sky remained clear. It would be time for them to return home soon.
"There are certainly advantages to being confident, but there are drawbacks as well," she said. "I worry about Lydia sometimes, because she is very romantic and is apt to fall in love easily, and she is too young to be thinking of marriage."
"Do you really think so?" Miss Darcy asked worriedly. "Do you not think that a person might find the love of her life at a young age?"
Elizabeth suppressed a grimace at these words. Miss Darcy was definitely attracted to Mr. Wickham, which was no great surprise given the speech, manners, figure, and face of the man.
"I think," she said carefully, "that a man and woman might begin walking the path of love when the lady is young, but it would be unwise to wed at such a young age. After all..."
She trailed off and felt her face flush. Really, she was speaking very openly with Miss Darcy, which was peculiar in that they did not know one another well. Elizabeth felt rather as if the girl was a sister, which was absurd.
"After all?" Georgiana prompted.
"Well, erm, when a young lady is not yet completely grown, she might not be able to safely bear children, after all."
"Oh!" Georgiana replied in a blank tone, just as a cry from above caused both girls to look up and observe Mrs. Younge, who smilingly pointed at the wooden stairway.
"I must go," Georgiana said. "It was pleasant spending time with you today, and being down here, near the water, is magnificent."
"I plan to be here every morning when the weather is pleasant," Elizabeth said. "I hope we will meet again and soon."
/
The Gardiners' Rented House
That Evening
The usual ocean breezes had been supplemented by the rising evening wind, and both Elizabeth's and her aunt's gowns flapped gently. The sun was sinking in a glory of orange, streaking dark shadows along the ground. The wicker of Elizabeth's chair creaked as she shifted and settled comfortably back down, watching her aunt's face. Mrs. Gardiner already looked better than she had some few days previously, the brisk ocean air and the relaxation doing her good. Elizabeth was pleased. Mrs. Gardiner had all but exhausted herself nursing her children only to then fall victim to the same flu that had laid them low. It was a relief, now, to see her returning to health.
"George Wickham?" Mrs. Gardiner repeated in answer to her niece's question. "No, I have no memory of anyone named Wickham, but then our family was not, of course, in any way intimate with the Darcys. Miss Darcy's mother was the daughter of an earl, and her father, while untitled, was the scion of an old and distinguished line."
"Have you ever been inside of Pemberley, Aunt?"
"I have, though it has been many years. The older Mr. Darcy held Public Days on occasion, and my parents took me and my older brother. It is a most impressive building, and the grounds are magnificent."
"As far as you know, the Darcys are very rich?"
"Very," Mrs. Gardiner agreed and wrinkled her brow. "Why do you ask?"
"I confess to being a trifle concerned about Miss Darcy. Mr. Wickham is a very handsome fellow, and I have reason to believe Miss Darcy is strongly attracted to him. I understand that he spends a great deal of time with the young lady, and I hope that she does not do anything foolish that would harm her reputation."
"You are thinking of Kitty and Lydia, no doubt?"
Elizabeth sighed and nodded. "Yes, I am. Girls in the throes of their first love can be most unwise, but my sisters are not heiresses, and Miss Darcy is."
"But you said that there is a companion?"
"Yes, a Mrs. Younge. She seems a sensible and accomplished woman."
"I would not worry then," her aunt said placidly, her blue eyes blinking drowsily in the soft light of the setting sun. "I am certain that Mrs. Younge is capable of looking after her charge well."
Elizabeth opened her mouth and then closed it with a snap. Her aunt had enough worries of her own without taking on concern for an unknown girl, however distinguished. Moreover, Mrs. Gardiner was probably correct. Mr. Darcy was, according to his sister, an attentive brother and would be careful in the lady who was looking after the girl.
"You should retire, Aunt," she said with a smile.
"I will, thank you, dear niece. I am feeling better but am still greatly fatigued."
"That is why we are here, for you and the children to rest and recover."
/
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Author Note: Happy new year everyone! I hope you will join me this year for more fun stories. :-)